Scalping has been an issue for many years in the shopping industry. However, in 2021 a new generation of scalpers have come into view.

With the worldwide virus, COVID-19, online shopping has become very common among people. That being said, scalpers have become very active this year.

Scalpers are people that buy large quantities of items, most commonly online, and resell those products for a larger amount of money than their retail price.

Many products are being sold by these scalpers. But, the most popular items are the new Playstation 5, shoes, tickets, books, Pokemon cards, and even Dolly Parton’s ice cream flavor.

As what the scalpers are doing seems wrong to the public, many of these scalpers think that what they are doing is harmless. They see this as an easy way to make money.

Especially with limited edition items, scalping can be seen as extremely hurtful to the company selling that item. This is because of the small stock of those limited items, once scalpers get a hold of said items they are likely to just be resold for lots of money. It has gone to the point where the main reason for a product to sell out so quickly is the scalpers themselves.

There are Playstation 5 scalpers that view their tactics as a business. The opinions on the topic are very wide and diverse, as multiple people see reselling as a great business idea. Many others think it is cruel, to not only the companies, but the consumers as well.

“Once Squishmallows got popular on Tiktok, they were all getting bought up and sold for so much money,” says middle school student Clara Grindell.

Many people are paying so much money for items online from scalpers, while if they were paying retail prices, it would not be as expensive. Consumers are left feeling scammed after paying an outrageous amount of money for something that is way less expensive.

“I’ve seen the same Bonnaroo tickets I bought a few years ago almost double in price after they sold out. They were almost never getting sold at their original price,” says concert-goer Brian Welker.

Scalpers are very controversial and have caused many items to go sold out. There is no telling of what scalpers will go after next, that’s why pre ordering an item is very beneficial to the buyer.